Answering the Call
by Cross
Summary: Basically about Setsuna and Souichi(Professor Tomoe). Forgive me if they are uncharacteristic and my ignorance of Japanese.


Disclaimer: I wrote this in one night

Disclaimer: I wrote this in one night.It takes place in the Silver Millennium, not long before Metallica attacks.It's mostly about Setsuna and Professor Tomoe (obviously not his name in this world).I created another parallel universe apart from the manga and anime.Pardon me for interfering with the timeline but this was one of those tales that just screams inside your head to be written.

In my heart, I felt it.In my heart, I knew it.She was the one I had been waiting for.No woman I had ever met or would ever meet could compare with her.How could they?

I wanted to go up to her right then and spill out my feelings before her feet like a suitor with jewels.Except that my feelings could not possibly be worthy of her, this woman with her hair as dark as those trees that the Earth's inhabitants called firs.Though I had never touched it, I was sure it would be softer than swans' feathers.Indeed, those fine hairs already flowed like silk from her shoulders.She was wearing it in her customary style, partly twisted into a smooth bun, the rest left to fall against her back.

At her back alone, I could have spent hours staring.So smooth were those faint ridges where the usual bone structure protruded.Her skin was a fine light tan that I found very alluring.Most of the women at the ball tonight, the rest of the Senshi being prime examples, were mostly pale.Naturally, I have no such prejudices against skin color for everyone is beautiful in their own right but somehow the very tint of this woman's skin made her seem more real to me than the rest, who were so beautiful as to be ethereal, like something out of a dream.This woman was surely someone who responded to her feelings and would voice her concerns and needs.

But, how foolish was my imagination.This was, in fact, the most remote of the Senshi.She guarded the Gates of Time with an authority that only the foolhardy would challenge.In fact, short of Queen Serenity and her daughter, not to mention my own daughter, I would have called her the most powerful of the Senshi.How could I even dream of touching her, let alone talk to her?She was not one to take in the arrogance that came with most royalty.At the previous ball, I had heard some uncouth suitor tried to persuade her in a most ungentlemanly fashion.The man was last seen recovering from a prodigious head wound and was profoundly polite to women, no matter their station.Many women who had encountered this man before his " change " pronounced the Princess of Pluto a blessing.If the Sailor of the Lower World was their saint, then the Sailor of the Skies, or Upper World, was surely their protector.There were few men who could match the temper or strength of Sailor Uranus after all.Nevertheless, hers was a strength that was admired but not imitated.It caused quite an uproar when she and Sailor Neptune declared their true love for each other.I went to congratulate the " groom " before the vows.She was really quite a figure of honor and justice; had she been a man she would have quite uplifted our gender and proven a splendid model.

Oh, but I have gotten off-topic.I glanced about me and noticed the angel who had captured my attention.She was walking towards one of the many balconies with her dancing partner, the Princess of Uranus who I had mentioned earlier.They were speaking and for some reason, the Princess of Neptune came up behind them and yanked her mate's cape.I barely managed to repress a chuckle when Uranus returned the favor by hauling her erstwhile wife over her shoulder.They headed towards the gardens that had been built along the roof of the grand hall.The palace of the Moon Kingdom is an intricate affair and I hope someone will write about it someday.But it will not be me for I am no expert at architecture.The sand castles I built as a boy collapsed as soon as the first sea breeze blew by.

After a moment's hesitation, I walked over and whispered a comment about the departing couple.She was about to answer, then seemed to catch herself.When she turned around, I was nearly blinded by the sight before me.It took nearly all my self-control to remain standing and even then, I felt weak on my knees.

She was wearing a gown so dark that at a quick glance it seemed black, but if you looked closer, you could tell it was crushed red velvet.It clung to her like a second skin, wrapping around most of her upper body, except for where it left her upper back bare and around her hips and thighs before billowing around her knees and ankles.There was a slit on the left side that came just up to the top of her knee.I had to remember to breathe.Her shoulders and arms were bare.Her arched neck bore a silver chain with a cabochon garnet pendant.As she turned her head, I could see that tonight, her ears were bare of the chipped garnet that most of the women of the Royal House of Pluto wore.Those earrings had their purpose, though; one time, I had seen this woman's mother take one of hers off and used it to release a fairly potent sleeping gas. Tonight, a different pair of garnets, in the same oval shape as her pendant, dangled from her lobes on tiny silver links.I admit that women's ears have a strange and perturbing effect on me.Before she died, my wife had often ended our few arguments by tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.Similar movements distracted me constantly from various council meetings, treaties, contracts, and my dinner.Inwardly, I gave a sigh as I thought about her and wondered what she would think of my actions now.Not long after our daughter was born, she had made me promise that if anything ever happened to her I must not let grief strike me away from duty, our daughter, or my own happiness.Her selflessness brings tears to my eyes even now.

Quickly, I brought my eyes back to her face lest she sense my ogling and then lost all the breath I had left.Her face was beyond my dreams and even now, I felt like I was in one of them, that if I blinked, she would be gone.Just for insurance, I did blink and she was still there.Her face was neither oval nor heart-shaped, but somewhere in between the two.Her cheekbones were high, just short of being angular and her chin ended in a delicate point.Her nose was straight and I could imagine the embarrassment I would have felt if she had been looking down that delicate feature at me.There are some things to be said about height although I would have risked a pile of amethysts that she could make you feel two inches tall without even moving.Like her back, her facial skin was smooth and lightly tanned.There was not a glimmer of a freckle or beauty mark in sight.Her lips were full, not quite pouty, and were a dark shade of pink.They must have been her natural color because all I could see was a trace of lip-gloss on those captivating lips.But it was her eyes, those glowing garnet orbs that drew me in.I had seen her talisman before and I knew that her eyes had to be the same shade as that crystal ball.Her brows were fine and thin without being plucked and were the same shade as her hair.There was a slight scar, a tiny one, right near the edge of her right brow.I made a note to ask her about that when I knew her better.

As we started talking, she drew me into speaking of my wife.It had been the first time I had ever spoken of her to anyone, save Hotaru.She made me feel so comfortable; I quailed at what she would do once she knew of my feelings for her.

Thankfully, my dear daughter saved me from blurting out the truth and making a fool of myself.I find it hard to accept that Hotaru is growing up; she has always been my little girl and it is hard to convince myself that someday she will marry and have children of her own.At least I pray that is so because the portents of the future, and the more frequent attacks do not bode well for the Alliance.But before she does marry, I hope she will be able to trust me enough to acquaint me with her love before they tie the proverbial knot.Naturally, I will give this person the " third degree " as the Earthlings refer to it (the rest of the galaxy just think of it as a rite of passage); after all, he will be marrying my daughter and I will take every precaution to make sure he will be deserving of her.I say " he ", but I will not disown her if she chooses one of her own gender.Although the idea does make me somewhat nervous, such unions, despite Uranus and Neptune being a good example, are not profuse.

This really lets me know I am old, despite what my daughter's teacher says.Planning Hotaru's future before she has even become a teenager!That is the way of parents, it seems.No matter my dreams, I just hope she finds a happy, peaceful, content future ahead of her.That, too, is the way of parents.Even though we know we cannot shelter our children forever, we do try to lessen the harsh reality of life.

I gaze once more at the woman who has captured my attention.She is talking to my daughter right now, her melodious voice soft and gentle.They make a pretty picture.Of course, neither resembles the other, not like Keiko and our daughter did, but it is an interesting picture nonetheless.

My daughter looks pensive, contemplating.Setsuna -- ah, well, I cannot hide her name any longer -- Setsuna glances at her, and in her eyes I see the concerned look of a mother for her child and it makes me love her even more, if that is possible.Beckoning for the tall woman to bend down, Hotaru whispers something in her ear and whatever she said makes Setsuna straighten up rather suddenly and blush.It might sound rather impetuous, but she looks even cuter when she blushes.

" Hotaru, " I call, " what did you ask Setsuna?Remember what we talked about before. "

Hotaru sighs and actually looks exasperated as she says, " I know, I know.Although I would still like to know why women who are fa--, er, stout, are constantly going to the bathroom. "

Setsuna gives me a mystified look and this time, I am the one blushing.

" Hotaru, not all women who are, er, round about the middle constantly go to the bathroom.Only some women, and those women usually have pragmatic reasons. "

" Like what? "

" Some may be pregnant, some may have bladder problems, etc. " This conversation was really not what I had in mind and was definitely not getting rid of my blush.It was instead making it more intense, and even more so because the woman I was falling in love with was smiling at me amusedly.

" Hotaru, perhaps we could pursue this conversation another time? "

" Papa, I am already eight years old!You said asking questions is not a bad thing. "

" Asking questions is not a bad thing, " Setsuna said firmly, stepping in." But there are some things that are better discussed in private, little one. "

The two shared a look and Hotaru nodded and said, " I see what you mean.But I would still like to know why being pregnant makes you go to the bathroom a lot. "

" Hotaru, you know how the baby is inside the woman, right? " I said quickly.

" Uh-huh. "

" Well, the place where the baby is, is right on top of the bladder and well...you see? "

Hotaru nodded sagely.

" Pregnant women have bladder problems. "

" Well, uh... " I gave up and glanced helplessly at Setsuna.I may have studied genetics but that does not make me an obstetrician.I really do not find it easy to explain matters concerning human anatomy, particularly female anatomy.

Setsuna gave me a wry look and shook her head before kneeling down in front of Hotaru and explaining.

" What your father means, Hotaru-chan, is that for now, many women who are pregnant have to go to the bathroom often.However, if you talk about it, please try not to do it often. "

" Why? "

" It's just that most people are not...comfortable with having to go to the bathroom often.Imagine if you had to go to the bathroom, say, every five minutes. "At Hotaru's age, five minutes often felt like half an hour but Setsuna had managed to get the point across.

" Okay, " she agreed." Arigatou, Meiou-san. "Then, she hugged Setsuna around the waist.I gather from the surprised look on her face that she was not used to being hugged often, but in less than a second, her look faded from surprised to something like content as she stood up slowly and cradled Hotaru with the expertise that could only have come from experience.I was startled but also rather pleased.The fact that Hotaru allowed Setsuna to hold her added to my own belief that Setsuna had a warm and kind heart and fueled the tiny hope I held that she might listen to, if not accept, my feelings.I have trusted Hotaru's judgement before that day.

There was a time when a council of every planet leader in the solar system had gathered to judge two companies of traders that did business in our solar system.Each company had their own representative.One was cold and distant, seemingly dismissive while the other was engaging with a warm air and often cracked small jokes near the end of each assembly.I found that Hotaru, only six at the time, would often follow the former representative, who glanced at the child at his heels occasionally but otherwise did nothing else.But she shrank away from the other representative who on occasion gave her some sweets and ruffled her hair.

Less than a week after the first assembly, a plot was uncovered concerning the second company who was working with some envious folk outside our solar system who were jealous of our prosperity.They were planning to infiltrate the council and kill us off, one by one.How they thought they could manage this absurd scheme was beyond comprehension.Nevertheless, I have taken into mind the way Hotaru acts around people.

" You look pensive, Your Ma-Souichi, " Setsuna recovered just in time, blushing once more.If anything, it was more bewitching than before, although I wished she would feel more comfortable calling me by my birth name.She must have been rigorously trained in court etiquette. 

" I was just thinking about how easily you hold her, " I said, gesturing towards my daughter.Her face was calm in sleep, her dark-violet hair falling just past her shoulders, her body held in arms that I only wished I could stroke and her head resting against Setsuna's breast.

She shrugged slightly and I gulped, snapping my eyes back to her face and shouting mentally at myself for acting so rudely.

" I used to baby-sit the rest of the Senshi when they were little, mostly Haruka and Michiru, " she said, absently cradling Hotaru." The memories help...to take away the loneliness. "

" You are lonely, then?Your post cannot be an easy one, no matter how much of an honor it is. "

" You seem to be the first one to see it besides Queen Serenity, and the rest of the Outer Senshi. " Her voice was flat, monotone.

" No wonder you and my daughter understand each other so much. "The words were out of my mouth before I could stop them.

Instead of growing colder, her eyes glimmered faintly with something resembling tears.Bowing her head, she stared at my daughter's face, stroking her fingers against one small cheek.Hotaru whimpered softly and I stroked the fine hairs across her forehead; that gesture always seems to quiet her.As she stopped, I removed my hand slowly so as not to disturb her and without thinking, brushed it across the top of Setsuna's breast.I colored even more deeply than I had from Hotaru's questioning but she seemed not to have noticed.I saw a shiver run through her, though.Unsure of whether it was from my faux pas or from the slight chill that began to settle in the air, I chose to remove my cloak and draped it over her shoulders.

" You should not do that, " her quiet voice interrupted." You'll catch a cold. "

" Rather me than you, " I replied.

" Rather none at all, " she retorted and wrapped the other end around my shoulders, moving closer as she did so.

As we drew closer to conserve the heat, I noticed her eyes upon mine and decided to take a risk.I stared back and nearly fell backwards.She knew.She had known all along, ever since she saw my face.

" How can you?I am more than ten years your senior, I have been married, I have loved another.That is my daughter you are holding.The future is not assured. "

" No, it is not. "Her eyes held me and I looked away, ashamed, for who should know better about how time works than its Guardian?

" I have told you, " she continued, " that I am lonely, yet I have never sought anyone to tell that loneliness, too.You are the first man that has understood me besides my father and I believe that I love you.I know you loved your wife, and I thank her for it because if you have loved before, you may love again.Do you not love me? "

Her eyes bore into mine and I saw that same selflessness that my wife had.She would not cling if I refused but neither would she stop loving me.If that should happen, she would still be a true foster mother and teacher to my daughter and would treat me in a polite, if not friendly, manner should we meet again.Yet, if I accepted her love, she would accept me in return, without hesitation, wholeheartedly, without turning back.She would not try to erase the love I had born for my wife out of my heart, not that she ever could.That is what her eyes told me, promised me, and at that moment, I knew why I had survived all these years after Keiko's death.Not just to raise Hotaru and take care of my realm, but also to meet the one whom I would be with until the end of this life and in all the lifetimes to come.

" I love you, Setsuna, Princess of Pluto, Guardian of Time, Senshi of the Lower World.There are not enough words for me to say what I feel for you.I love everything I have seen and known about you and I would like to spend the rest of my life, with you, learning about you, loving you.I love you as King of Saturn, Lord of the Planet of Destruction.I love you as the father of Hotaru.But most of all, I love you as Souichi, a mere man, one who will live and die and perhaps be reborn again to join you once more.Can you accept me as I am? "

Her eyes lit up joyously, and she whispered simply, " I can accept you as that and more. "

Then her lips met mine, and I was shattered.Everything faded away except the feeling of her in my arms, a child between us, not one made by both of us, but one who had, in the end, brought us together.The cloak fell off our shoulders.I wanted to hold her forever.Even without the kiss, that would have been enough.

We broke apart as Hotaru woke up, yawning.

She blinked and looked at us quizzically before asking, " Papa, are you and Setsuna-san going to get married yet or do we have to wait until the moonblossom falls? "

The moonblossom was an exceptional flower that grew from a gigantic, leafy tree.There was only one bud each year, and it always fell without ever blooming, except for every thousand years, where it would bloom for a night and day and then fall to the ground.Ever since the founding of the Moon Kingdom, these trees have existed only in a particular glade and members of the Royal Guard are sanctioned nearby to guard the trees in case anyone would be sacrilegious enough to bring them harm.

" Yeah, she's right, " said a new, somewhat familiar voice nearby.The Senshi of Fire and Princess of Mars, Rei, stepped out from behind a bush in the back.

" It's about time, " chorused Makoto and Minako, Senshi of Thunder and Wood and Senshi of Love, respectively.

" Glad to see you made up your mind, " Haruka offered.

" Actually, she's really disappointed that you're no longer single, " Michiru teased Setsuna, and then squealed as Haruka tickled the back of her neck.

Apparently, the Senshi of Wind and the Senshi of the Seas were in full accord once more and none the worse for wear from their " excursion " in the garden.

" You guys planned this? " Setsuna demanded, her face blazing mostly from embarrassment rather than fury.

" Not really, " Makoto said.

" It was Serenity's idea, " Rei broke in.

" Did someone call my name? " the cheerful Princess of the Moon piped up.She was leading a reluctant man in a white mask, black top hat and cape, and tuxedo.

" Why, you- " Haruka was rearing to go.

" Haruka, two words, " Michiru said sternly." Fight.Couch. "

Haruka deflated and subsided, muttering.There were several muffled giggles from the rest of the Senshi, most of them from Serenity.

" I am pleased to see you made it, Mamoru-kun, " I said, calling the Prince of Earth by his alias.

Endymion blushed from the neck up.

" Well, it wasn't easy, but this plus Serenity was worth it, " he sad.

" What do you mean 'plus'? " Serenity demanded.

" Usako... "Those two were at it again.Everyone just rolled their eyes and sighed.What else could one do?

" Speaking of moonblossoms, " Princess Ami of Mercury, Senshi of Water, spoke up, " I've done some calculations- "

All of us, even Serenity and Endymion, groaned in unison.

" -And they say that the moonblossoms should be falling, oh, right about now, " Ami finished up with a grin.There were gasps all around and every one of us made it to the railing in time to receive a blast of translucent, luminescent petals in their faces.When we managed to clear our eyes, we were in time to see the shower of moonblossom petals.

Did I forget to mention that though the flowers bloom only once every thousand years, that blossom is

about twenty feet in diameter and has, according to statistics, millions of petals? 

As we stood there, watching the shower, I felt a warm hand grasp mine.I turned to smile at Setsuna and we exchanged a quick kiss before she sighed and leaned into me.I saw that Endymion and Serenity were similarly engaged, as were Haruka and Michiru, and the Inner Senshi had their Knights.Hotaru looked at me, then at Setsuna.

We shared a look, and then Setsuna lifted Hotaru into her arms, as I wrapped my hand around her waist.My cape, once more on my shoulders, fluttered behind us in the wind.I rested my chin on Setsuna's head, inhaling her scent.Hotaru and I smiled at each other and then she settled into Setsuna's hold, resting her head once more on Setsuna's breast.

We stood there, all of us together, staring at the night sky with the thousands of stars twinkling in the night.Never in my life had I felt so content.I looked at Hotaru thoughtfully; maybe I would get use to saying " our " daughter again one day, who knew?

" It looks like we have no excuse now, not with the moonblossoms falling, " Setsuna said to me.

" Isn't that the way it should be? " I asked her.She sighed in contentment and so did I.

As always, destiny would have the last word.


End file.
